


Grand Duet

by AgentNegg



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, New Dangan Ronpa V3: Everyone's New Semester of Killing
Genre: Afterlife, Canon Compliant, Cute Ending, F/M, Love Confessions, My First AO3 Post, My First Fanfic, My First Work in This Fandom, Romance, Shuichi died but it was from old age and now he's in a better place with Kaede, Wholesome
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-01
Updated: 2019-03-01
Packaged: 2019-11-07 16:57:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,168
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17964443
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AgentNegg/pseuds/AgentNegg
Summary: Shuichi meets Kaede again on the afterlife, after decades of wait.





	Grand Duet

Shuichi woke up in a place distinctively different from where he had fallen asleep the night prior. Below him, he felt a soft, comforting surface. A familiar melody could be heard from a distance, just far enough away as to where he could barely recognize the soothing notes.

\- Hey Shuichi! - uttered a familiar voice.

Shuichi was confused. He recognized that voice, but the thought of actually hearing it was nearly inconceivable.

\- I can’t believe my sidekick has forgotten about me… I’m disappointed, you know!

\- K… Kaito? - said the detective, still confused with waking up in such an unfamiliar situation - How…

\- Aha! So you do remember me!

His senses were slowly coming back to him. His body felt rejuvenated. He looked around and his vision confirmed what he heard. Standing above him, there was his old friend, Kaito Momota, the Luminary of the Stars.

\- Kaito! - said Shuichi, while simultaneously darting up from the ground - This isn’t a dream, is it?

\- Whoa! Calm down Shuichi! This is not a dream, bro.

\- Then am I…

\- Yeah, but don’t worry about it! - casually said Kaito - This isn’t a bad place to be at. You did an amazing job down there, as expected from my sidekick! You can chill out now.

\- Thank you Kaito - whispered the detective, a single tear running down his face.

\- Hey, this is not time for crying! We all missed you, everyone is very excited about seeing you again.

\- We…?

\- You’ll see! Just come with me. - said Kaito as he guided Shuichi towards the melody, the notes becoming clearer with each step.

\- Hey… How’s Maki Roll doing down there… - said Kaito, with a quiet, almost worried voice.

\- She’s doing good… You know she can be very strong. She misses you a lot…

\- Well, there’s no point in being sad! - he stated loudly, returning to his usual energetic tone - We’ll see each other again some day! Now let’s hurry up, there’s someone that is very eager to see you again.

Shuichi kept following. Familiar voices greeted him, carrying warm and welcoming smiles on their faces.

\- Well, look who’s finally here! The fucking virgin has finally arrived!

\- Please refrain from addressing our friend with such indecent manners!

\- Shuichi here? Gonta happy! Gonta miss his friend a lot!

\- Hello Shuichi… I’m glad you got to realise the potential I saw in you. I apologize for being unable to be of assistance.

\- Hey Shuichi, I bet you missed me, didn’t you? I didn’t miss you though… Just kidding!

The detective happily greeted them back, glad he could see them again.

Then he finally got close enough. The notes started to articulate themselves and form a beautiful, calming composition. He recognized the first song he learned to play. It was a melody made by Claude Debussy… Being played by the hands of a talented pianist. It reminded him of her…

\- You still haven’t figured it out by now? For a detective you’re being pretty slow, you know… - teased Kaito - Anyways, we’re here!

They stopped by a big wooden door, full of beautifully made engravings of the score he had recognized. Kaito opened the door, and Shuichi’s heart was filled with joy.

\- Hi Shuichi… I missed you… - said the beautiful girl whose gaze Shuichi had just met.

Her long, blonde hair was flowing over her bare shoulders. She was wearing a long, elegant, soft pink dress decorated with delicately woven musical notes. She was sitting down in a straight posture, and her slender fingers pressed against the marble keys of a beautiful, white grand piano with agility and grace that were fitting of her title of Ultimate Pianist.

\- Kaede! - proclaimed Shuichi, unable to contain the tears from flowing down his face - Kaede I… I missed you too… I missed you so much…

\- It’s okay, I’m here now. I heard you really wanted to hear me play the piano…

\- I did… I have wanted to hear it for so long… - he responded - Would you mind if I joined you?

\- There’s nothing that would make me happier…

He then walked over to the pianist and sat besides her in front of the grand piano. They had never been given the opportunity to play together beforehand, nonetheless their movements quickly synchronized, and without exchanging a single word, they were moving as one.

\- Shuichi… You’ve really grown a lot… - said Kaede

\- I’ve been practicing… Playing the piano made me feel like you were there with me…

\- That too, but... that’s not what I mean! - whispered her with a flustered pout.

\- I don’t understand…

\- When I first met you, you were scared… Scared of being yourself, and scared of searching for the truth. And when I… Left you… I was afraid you’d go back to that. Afraid you’d stop looking for the truth… But you didn’t. You relied on the support of your friends, and you were able to set yourself free of your fears. And no matter how much the world pushed against you, you were able to find your own truth. You did amazing things down there Shuichi, and I’m very proud of you…

\- Kaede, I… - he stuttered - I couldn’t have done it without you!

Kaede’s face turned red, embarrassed at the words spoken by him.

\- It’s true that I was finally able to find myself… That I was finally able to look for the truth… But all of it was because of you! When I was scared, you were the one who pushed me to move forward! If you didn’t push me back then, everyone would have died because of me being scared… But you did! And after you died for it I couldn’t… I… 

\- Shuichi…

\- I had to keep going! I couldn’t have let it all have been in vain! I might have grown a lot… But it was all thanks to you. So thank you… Thank you Kaede…

\- Shuichi I…

And as if on cue, arrived the end of the song, their hands touching as they reached for the last note. Peaceful silence enveloped the two, as they gazed at each other.

\- I love you, Kaede… And I’m not scared of this truth.

\- I love you too Shuichi… - She answered, tears running down her face.

Shuichi then took her hand, like she had taken his long ago, and leaned in for a long overdue kiss. Kaede closed her eyes and tightened her grip on his hand. They felt the warmth of their lips touching, and their hearts were finally at peace. The kiss only lasted for a few short moments, but for them, that moment would last forever.

\- I’ll never lose you again… I promise I won’t. - confidently said Shuichi, putting Kaede at his embrace.

\- And I’ll never leave you like I did… That’s a promise too - she responded, pressing herself tightly against him.

And there the two sat, together at last, enjoying each other’s embrace by the grand piano that gave them their first duet. They had found their truths in each other, and no one could ever take that from them… Not anymore.


End file.
